That’s not a Martini!

Finding something original for this month’s Mixology Monday Challenge, “almost, but not quite, a Martini“, was somewhat of a difficult task. The Martini is such a popular cocktail that it already inspired hundreds of variations (and I am not talking about the abominations that don’t bear much resemblance to the gin and dry vermouth classic, other than the glass they are served in). For example, The Savoy Cocktail Book contains endless variations on this theme that only differ by dashes of various ingredients, from bitters to curaçao, grenadine, or absinthe…

Acrylic afternoons

I had pretty much given up on this month’s MxMo and its resinaceous theme. For some reason, I did not feel especially inspired and could not see myself buying a special ingredient to be able to fit with the theme.

Like Monsieur Jourdain who eventually realized that he had been speaking in prose his entire life, unbeknownst to me I had actually been playing with resin for a few weeks. And I came to the realization that I had three cocktails that were perfect for this month’s challenge.

Gum syrup is made from gum Arabic, a resin that is obtained from the sap of the acacia tree. Also known as gomme (French for gum), it used to be a common ingredient in cocktails in the late 1800s. It can be used in place of simple syrup and, as an added bonus, its high viscosity changes the texture of the cocktail. The gum syrup that I use is made by Small Hands Foods in San Francisco.

First I tried it in a Whiskey Old Fashioned with Buffalo Trace bourbon. The resulting cocktail had a rich texture that made it very approachable and dangerously smooth.

The Imperial

Erik Ellestad of the Savoy Stomp blog has been taking his Savoy Nights on the road and did one at the Eveleigh in LA a few months ago. Sadly, he did not make it down to San Diego (maybe another time?). I am still recovering from my disappointment… Anyway, I’ve been keeping an eye on these events to see what he is mixing.

This cocktail may not have been included on the menu that night, but it’s one that Erik mentioned as being amongst his favorite Savoy cocktails. The Imperial Cocktail is a recipe that actually predates Harry Craddock. I found it in Hugo Ensslin’s Recipes for Mixed Drinks (1917) and also in Tim Daly’s Bartender’s Encyclopedia (1903) (as pointed out by cocktail101).